Ruth Talks To Deane-Cum-Heaton and Smithills Branches

These are abstracts taken directly from the minutes of the joint Deane-Cum-Heaton and Smithills Branches' meeting at which MP Ruth Kelly addressed members and took part in a question and answer discussion.

Ruth began by voicing her appreciation at the good turn out and said that meetings such as these were invaluable means of MPs getting feedback from Party members. She added that her office would be organising similar meetings for all members in the Bolton West Constituency every three months.

  The Budget

She said that the last couple of months have seen a number of issues clarified and the Budget and the Green Paper on Welfare Reform had answered a lot of the questions in people's minds. The Budget had been the first in more than 20 years in which a redistribution of wealth had been carried out to help those at the bottom of the income scale. The bottom 20% in particular have been helped. The remarkable feat of Gordon Brown is that he was able to do so without alienating anyone.

It was a budget for the family and for poor families in particular. It maintains the theme of Welfare to Work. More money was again allocated to the NHS and we have now put far more into health than the Lib-Dems would have done with their promised tax increase.

The Working Families Tax Credit Scheme was the key innovation in the budget. This replaces the means tested Family Credit with a Tax Credit when people go into work. In one stroke it will abolish the benefits and poverty trap and will mean that working families will be guaranteed at least £180 per week and no tax will be payable until beyond that level. The take up of Family Credit is around 70% and we want to increase that. The new system should ensure that all those eligible receive it. It is much easier to sell tax cuts to the electorate than benefits increases and much more effective for the recipients.

Gordon Brown's Budget represented the biggest shake up of the Welfare State in a generation. Within the family it focussed on children. Child Benefit remained universal and was increased by the biggest amount ever (20%). The Budget was also good for business. Corporation Tax was reduced again and help was given to small businesses and entrepreneurs. The Budget changes were carried through without any need for increases in taxes. The economy is doing very well, maybe rather too well and it has to be kept really tight.

The key to the success of what we are doing is consultation. There was a lot of consultation on the Tax Credit system and we responded to what people wanted. The changes in PEPs and TESSAs reflect this and have been welcomed. Even so, it's an interim Budget waiting for the results of the comprehensive spending review due out in the summer. It was also part of the process of welfare reform.

  Welfare Reform

Welfare reform went another stage forward with the publication of Frank Field's Green Paper that laid out the Government's general themes. Two key principles are:-

      Those who need help will receive it

      A commitment to reform. Those who really need help and deserve it just are not getting the full assistance they need at present.

Child Benefit and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) will remain universal. There is a lot of muddle and confusion over benefits and Incapacity Benefit is one that causes a lot of problems. The last Government took a lot of people off the dole figures and onto Incapacity Benefit which is paid in perpetuity, regardless of whether or not their condition would improve in the future and allow them back into work. Some people who are receiving it shouldn't be and vice versa. The criteria for judging eligibility is unclear and we are going to establish transparent gateways which people will understand. Tests will focus on what people can do rather than on what they can't.

Those who are in greatest need will see real increases in their benefits. There will be an emphasis on civil rights for the disabled, especially in relation to the jobs market. The Government is determined to tackle the problem of discrimination.

  The Legislative Programme

There is a very packed legislative programme. The Minimum Wage legislation has gone through and we will soon know the level at which that will be set. The Tories are trying to block everything and the House is often kept up until 3:30 am and sometimes all night.

Frank Dobson has announced the Health Action Zones, a number of which will be in the North West and Bolton has got money from the Education Action Programme. The New Deal was launched in the town last week with more than 500 local employers invited to take part.

  Local Policy Forums

Other areas where we are taking action are numerous and the Child Support Agency (CSA) is one example. We don't want mistakes like the CSA to happen again and it is one organisation that is being completely reviewed. Nothing like that will ever be done again without consultation with all those likely to be involved. Local Policy Forums are being set up in the Bolton West Constituency starting with one on Crime in June. There will be half or full day seminars allowing in-depth discussion and policy formulation. All interested members were urged to participate.

  Questions and Discussion

Ruth's talk was followed by a series of questions and answers.

      Graham: Frank Dobson has put a lot of money into the NHS over and above the previous allocation but we still have the spectre of wards closing, waiting lists increasing, etc.

Ruth: We can't change things overnight. Frank Dobson and Tony Blair are determined that by the end of this Government waiting lists will be much shorter than at its beginning. They are totally committed to this. In reply to a supplementary from Graham, asking if waiting list reduction really was the best way to judge our success with the NHS, Ruth said that it was only one of several indicators. Frank Dobson has a number of criteria against which our success will be judged.

      Sterling: It's still great to wake up every day and know that we have a Labour Government. He asked about the coming White Paper on Trade Unions and Trade Union Reform. We need to have a strong third force in the economy to prevent too cosy relationships developing between Government and Industry. He referred to the cronyism, common in the SE Asian economies.

Ruth: It's unclear yet as to how things will turn out but the Government is unequivocal that all workers have the right to trade Union representation. Roger Lyons (General Secretary of MSF) has personally met every MP that the Union sponsors and other Unions have carried out similar lobbying, especially on the question of recognition ballots.

      George: He asked about the meeting between Bank of England Governor, Eddie George, and 40 MPs about the introduction of the Euro.

Ruth: Eddie George met the Treasury Select Committee (on which Ruth sits) and he was very frank on his attitude to EMU, particularly on the question of "fudging" whether or not certain countries have met the Maastrict criteria on convergence. He said that there could be serious strains between the 11 initial participants if their economies are at very different stages. However, the culture in the rest of Europe towards greater integration is much more positive than in the UK. They have made tremendous efforts to bring their economies together. Actually joining together in EMU could accelerate convergence.

      John (Gillatt): What about the £? Its strength is hitting manufacturing industry, especially exporters.

Ruth: We have only two ways to control the pound and that's with taxes and interest rates. If we increase taxes it hits people's standard of living, if we decrease interest rates we risk inflation and yet another "boom and bust" cycle.

      Anne: Asked about the difficulties for women seeking abortion locally, even when their own GP thinks that such a step is warranted. Locally, consultant gynaecologists just say NO! There seem to be no universal set of rules that gynaecologists have to follow.

Ruth: The view is that issues such as this will have to be decided centrally with standards set to avoid inconsistencies across geographic areas. There will be no loosening or tightening of the abortion rules under Government legislation although there may be a Prive Member's Bill on the issue.

      Carole: There is concern about pressurising women, especially lone women, to go back to work when they have very young children.

Ruth: The Tax Credit system will pay up to 70% of childcare places for people earning up to £17,000 and there will even be help for those earning up to £35,000. There is a need to strike a balance between allowing people to stay at home to look after children and being able or wanting to return to work.

      Ken: Tuition fees for university students is still a big problem. Children are and will in future go off to university and come back with bigger and bigger debts.

Ruth: This has been one of the great misunderstandings since we took power. The whole idea of tuition fees is to put more money into universities and colleges. A third of all students, from the poorest homes, will pay nothing at all and loans, repayable over a long period, will be available. The loans won't have to be repaid if the person is unemployed or on a low income. Despite the introduction of tuition fees there have been more university applicants this year than last.

A number of other points were made and Ruth responded accordingly:-

      Simon: Before the election our presentation on most issues was immaculate. But, on issues such as lone parent benefit, tuition fees, DLA it's been terrible since we've been in Government.

      Barbara: Should a non-elected Press Spokesman be telling elected Ministers what to do?

      Joe: The Government should take steps to curb the oil companies' excess profits. The price of crude oil has halved but pump prices haven't gone down.

      Alan: As Iraq begins to sell more oil on the open market the oil price will go down still further.

      In response to a question from Richard, Ruth said that £500 million had been allocated to public transport in the Budget.

      Joyce: The Government should encourage employers to institute more job-sharing schemes and provide more part-time employment. This would really help working women.

      Barbara: The policies of the last Government made a lot of people out of work and unable to contribute to their pensions. What is to be done for them?

Ruth: The pensions white paper will address that issue. In addition there is to be a focus on the over 55s in the New Dealand it will be a very different sort of programme than for younger people.

      Anne: The Bolton Economic Development Unit has carried out a survey of over 50s in one ward of Bolton recently. They've looked at the skills available, how these could be used, barriers to employment, etc. and they have funds to work with these people.

      John (Cross): What about the pensions of people who give up work to look after elderly relatives?

Ruth: In the pensions white paper the concept of Citizenship Pensions will be introduced, especially for people who do that.

      Andrew: Will the 48 hour working week maximum, which will be incorporated into UK law when we take up the EU Social Chapter, cover people who are sent to work abroad for UK based companies?

Ruth: Said that she's find out about this.

      Alice: Asked about the position of a man of 59 that gives up work to look after a sick wife. This man is receiving only £35 per week benefit.

Ruth: He should contact the Welfare Rights Department at Bolton Town Hall.

On behalf of all those present Graham thanked Ruth for her valuable and interesting talk and the discussion that followed. He thanked members for their participation and declared the meeting closed.

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